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Hordeum vulgare
| Common name: |
Barley |
Family: |
Gramineae |
| Author: |
L. |
Botanical references: |
1, 17 |
| Synonyms: |
Hordeum sativum (Pers.) |
| Known Hazards: |
None known |
| Range: |
Of uncertain origin. |
| Habitat: |
Not known in the wild, it is found in Britain as a relict of cultivation but does not persist[17]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
4 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 3 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| H. aegiceras[B,G,P]
H. agriocrithon[G]
H. agriocrithon var. dawoense[G]
H. coeleste var. trifurcatum[G]
H. deficiens[G]
H. deficiens var. nudideficians[G]
H. deficiens var. steudelii[G]
H. deficiens var. tridax[G]
H. distichon[B,G,P]
H. distichon var. abyssinicum[G]
H. distichon var. erectum[G]
H. distichon var. ianthinum[G]
H. distichon var. nigricans[G]
H. distichon var. nudideficiens[G]
H. distichon var. nudum[G]
H. distichon var. nutans[G]
H. distichon var. palmella[G]
H. distichon var. persicum[G]
H. distichon var. tridax[G]
H. hexastichon[G,P]
H. hexastichum[B,P]
H. irregulare[G,P]
H. lagunculiforme[G]
H. polystichon[G]
H. polystichum var. trifurcatum[G]
H. tetrastichum[G]
H. tetrastichum var. aethiops[G]
H. vulgare subsp. deficiens[G]
H. vulgare subsp. interjectum[G]
H. vulgare subsp. intermedium[G]
H. vulgare subsp. vulgare[G]
H. vulgare var. aethiops[G]
H. vulgare var. afghanicum[G]
H. vulgare var. coeleste[G]
H. vulgare var. coerulescens[G]
H. vulgare var. cornutum[G]
H. vulgare var. deficiens[G]
H. vulgare var. duplinigrum[G]
H. vulgare var. himalayense[G]
H. vulgare var. horsfordianum[G]
H. vulgare var. leiorrhynchum[G]
H. vulgare var. nigricans[G]
H. vulgare var. nigrum[G]
H. vulgare var. nudum[G]
H. vulgare var. pallidum[G]
H. vulgare var. steudelii[G]
H. vulgare var. tetrastichon[G]
H. vulgare var. trifurcatum[B,G,P]
H. vulgare var. violaceum[G]
H. x intermedium[G]
H. x intermedium var. cornutum[G]
H. x intermedium var. haxtonii[G]
H. x intermedium var. mortonii[G]
H. x intermedium var. nudihaxtonii[G]
H. zeocrithon[G]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Arpa [E], Barley [E,L], Cebada [E], Common Barley [B,P], Gerst [D], Jo [E], Kung Mai [E], Kung Mai Nieh [E], Mai Ya [E], No Mai [E], Orzo [E], Sha'Ir [E], Six-rowed Barley [L], Ta Mai [E], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
vulgare = common;
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA
Plants Database |
|
Order: Cyperales. Renamed to Poaceae -- Grass family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
Britain(Wales); China; Egypt; India; Iraq; Italy; Kurdistan; Nepal; Spain; Turkey
|
| Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds | From USDA
PLANTS database, Weeds Australia
, DEFRA Injurious Weeds | | Listed as noxious/invasive for: USA Invasive. |
Physical Characteristics
Annual growing to 1m by 0.2m . It is hardy to zone 4 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to August. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind.
We rate it 4/5 for edibility and
3/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
It cannot grow in the shade.
It requires moist soil.
The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Cultivated Beds.Edible Uses
Coffee; Drink; Salt; Seed; Sweetener.
Seed - cooked as a whole grain or ground up and used as a flour for
making bread, porridges etc[2, 7, 46, 183]. It has a low gluten content and
so is unsuitable for making wheat-type breads[238, K]. The seed can be
fermented into sourdough and many other fermented foods such as 'tempeh' and
'miso'[183]. The seed can also be sprouted and added to salads or the
sprouted seed juiced and the juice drunk as a health-food drink[183].
The decorticated seed is called pearl barley. This is no longer viable since
the decortication process damages the embryo. It is used in soups, stews
etc[238].
Malt is obtained by sprouting the whole seed and then roasting it. The seed
is then ground into a flour and boiled in water. The resulting liquid is very
sweet and can be used in making beer or other drinks, and as a nutritious
sweetener in various foods.[7, 46].
The roasted (unsprouted) seed is used as a coffee[46, 183] and a salt
substitute.
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Abortifacient; Cancer; Carminative; Demulcent; Digestive; Diuretic; Emollient; Expectorant; Febrifuge; Galactofuge; Hypoglycaemic; Lenitive; Nutritive; Poultice; Stomachic.
The shoots are diuretic[218].
The seed sprouts are demulcent, expectorant, galactofuge, lenitive and
stomachic[176, 218]. They are sometimes abortifacient[218]. They are used in
the treatment of dyspepsia caused by cereals, infantile lacto-dyspepsia,
regurgitation of milk and breast distension[176]. They are best not given to
a nursing mother since this can reduce milk flow[176].
The seed is digestive, emollient, nutritive, febrifuge and stomachic[218].
It is taken internally as a nutritious food or as barley water (an infusion
of the germinated seed in water) and is of special use for babies and
invalids[238]. Its use is said to reduce excessive lactation[238]. Barley is
also used as a poultice for burns and wounds[4, 46, 176, 218].
The plant has a folk history of antitumour activity[218].
The germinating seed has a hypoglycaemic effect preceded by a hyperglycaemic
action[218].
Modern research has shown that barley may be of aid in the treatment of
hepatitis, whilst other trials have shown that it may help to control
diabetes[254]. Barley bran may have the effect of lowering blood cholesterol
levels and preventing bowel cancer[254]. We have a more details factsheet on the history and medicinal use of this plant. Email webmaster@pfaf.org for details.
Other Uses
Biomass; Mulch; Paper.
The stems, after the seed has been harvested, have many uses. They are
a source of fibres for making paper, a biomass for fuel etc, they can be
shredded and used as a mulch[141, 171].
Cultivation details
Succeeds in most soils and in climates ranging from sub-arctic to
sub-tropical[1, 171]. Easily grown in light soils[162]. Prefers a calcareous
soil[7]. Best grown in a sunny position[238].
Barley first came under cultivation about 12,000 years ago[238]. It is
widely cultivated in Temperate areas of the world for its edible seed, there
are many named varieties[57, 183]. It succeeds further north than most other
cereal crops (it succeeds in Norway at latitude 70° N[142]), and at higher
altitudes (it is a staple crop in Tibet)[57, 238]. The Coeleste group
contains the hull-less barleys. Although lower yielding than the type, these
hull-less seeds are much easier to harvest making them a much easier crop to
grow on a small scale[183].
Propagation
Seed - sow in situ in March or October and only just cover the seed.
Make sure the soil surface does not dry out if the weather is dry.
Germination takes place within 2 weeks.
Cultivars
- ''
- There are many named varieties of this annual cereal, with new forms being developed each year. At present there is not time to enter these in the database.
Suppliers
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
Web References
- Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
- [E] Ethnobotany Data
(common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
- [B] Data
(Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [PHARM] Phytochemical Data
(common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HEC] Use, Folk Medicine, etc. from Handbook of Energy Crops by James Duke
References for Hordeum vulgare subsp. vulgare (a possible synonym).
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
[7] Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984 ISBN 0-356-10541-5
Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
[141] Carruthers. S. P. (Editor) Alternative Enterprises for Agriculture in the UK. Centre for Agricultural Strategy, Univ. of Reading 1986 ISBN 0704909820
Some suggested alternative commercial crops for Britain. Readable. Produced by a University study group.
[142] Brouk. B. Plants Consumed by Man. Academic Press 1975 ISBN 0-12-136450-x
Readable but not very comprehensive.
[162] Grounds. R. Ornamental Grasses. Christopher Helm 1989 ISBN 0-7470-1219-9
Cultivation details of many of the grasses and bamboos. Well illustrated.
[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.
[176] Yeung. Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, Los Angeles 1985
A very good Chinese herbal.
[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.
[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
[254] Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148
An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
Readers Comments
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Plant information taken from the
Plants For A Future -
Species Database.
Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963 This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Hordeum+vulgare
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